Lloyd: Street Love

“Long hair, don’t care” is the missed catch-phrase of the year. It’s said by guest rapper Lil’ Wayne at the end of “You”, the smooth, deservedly chart-topping single off Lloyd’s sophomore album, Street Love. Lloyd, a 21-year-old with Tiger Beat good looks, largely sheds the R&B thug image of his debut, Southside, in favor of an album largely given over to panty-anthems. Besides the guest rapper singles, Street Love is all bedroom ballads, with the standouts being the Polow the Don produced title track (which is slow-enough to make his work on Ciara’s “Promise” sound almost breakneck) and the sleazy Irv Gotti produced “Take You Home.” The worst offender is “Hazel”, an embarrassing “Sex Weed” rip-off (“girl let me take a look at those purple highlights in your hair”) that R. Kelly already took to ridiculously hilarious heights, whereas Lloyd’s version is all-too sincere. “Every night of the week lookin’ for some groupie love”, Lloyd sings on “Player’s Prayer”: Jamie Foxx once admitted to bumping his own tunes while getting it on — similarly, Lloyd seems more interested in making staid, tried-and-true, music-that-will-get-me-laid music, rather than taking the style to new enclaves.